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Microsoft Raises Prices for All Surface PCs, Making Them More Expensive Than Equivalent Macs
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EM2013
macrumors 68030
It seems like they forced and rushed this ai and there was no preparations for it
joshwithachance
macrumors 68030
Nobody was buying these at their previous prices. And now even less will be…
People shouldn't forget the rapidly growing services revenue of Apple. Their ecosystem is very hard to leave, and is fairness seamless . . . including for families. Apple's iPhone sales have plateau for a while, but they aren't really shrinking. The more they are able to pull in new users (from whatever product line), they more sticky revenue they enjoy well into the future. Microsoft (as a PC manufacturer) has nothing like this, and neither does any PC player.
Microsoft has, like several others, decided to bet the farm on AI. We'll see if that was indeed the wisest approach. If I were them, I would have diversified and really tried to corner component operations as well as Cook apparently has. We'll see if a "new" player, like Nvidia, really decides to get into the various client (phones, tablets, laptops, etc) product lines which would allow them to drive services revenue. They seem to suggest it from time-to-time, but I haven't really seen any lasting evidence. The only revenue they seem concerned about is enterprise AI.
Microsoft has, like several others, decided to bet the farm on AI. We'll see if that was indeed the wisest approach. If I were them, I would have diversified and really tried to corner component operations as well as Cook apparently has. We'll see if a "new" player, like Nvidia, really decides to get into the various client (phones, tablets, laptops, etc) product lines which would allow them to drive services revenue. They seem to suggest it from time-to-time, but I haven't really seen any lasting evidence. The only revenue they seem concerned about is enterprise AI.
I have used so many laptops and notebooks and not a single one even came close to the trackpad on the Apple MacBooks. And that's the single critical reason I don't ever switch even though I use very little stuff that actually requires a MacBook. Surface and a few other laptops I used were otherwise great. But there's just something about the MacBook trackpad that is just so addictive!
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It's truly mind boggling just how bad trackpads can be on many PC laptops! How do they pass usability testing?!?!
I’m heavily using AI for my company and have top tier subscriptions in Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini. I absolutely love Claude for productivity, I find it to be quite emotionless and blunt and rather well talking to a robot. I prefer ChatGPT for ad copy, and formulating well constructed paragraphs and text. I have played around with Gemini and it’s slow and clunky. I think any software company betting the house on one AI is going down a slippery slope. They all have their unique edge and I would happily switch to another if there was a reason to. I think most people are in this same boat. Apple’s AI was shameful but at least they didn’t burn through their cash trying to compete in this market. Curious to hear from others regarding this.
jdawgnoonan
macrumors 65816
I would prefer no AI to Copilot buttons and ads. I use Claude quite a lot myself and it is excellent.
ikramerica
macrumors 68020
It’s the history of San Francisco. The people who got rich during the goldrush were the saloon keepers, bankers and outfitters.
A steak and egg breakfast cost the same in 1848 San Francisco as it did in 1988.
Slix
macrumors 68000
And it's not even a recent issue. MacBook trackpads have been great since the late 2000s when they made them full-sized multi-touch trackpads. I have yet to use a Windows laptop that is anywhere close to even those earlier ones, pre-Force Touch. Truly mind boggling.
ikramerica
macrumors 68020
Maybe there will be an AI aggregator that can choose the right “person” for the job.
jchap
macrumors 6502a
You mentioned in a separate post that you use Claude "quite a lot".
Like I said, consumers (and businesses) have chosen AI, whether it be chatbots or automagical AI image editing or miraculous video generation for deepfakes, and the list goes on. I say "we" in a general sense.
Even if you are still using Google for web searches, likely you are often getting AI-generated results on top of the regular search results. Google has forced this choice upon users. The only way to combat this corporate behavior is to boycott the services.
As consumers, we have a say in what services we choose to support and pay for. We can support AI or not. Our choices will likely have an effect on the RAM market, and consequently the price of the Mac and PC hardware we enjoy so much.
At least, that was the gist of what I was trying to say.
I am a Mac user, but always keep a basic Windows PC + laptop because of "things" ha. The laptop only gets used for specific tasks like legacy hardware that needs updating or other random on-the-go things that need updates. It happens a couple of times a year!
In December, Microsoft had the 13" Surface Laptop Snapdragon X on sale for $692, and PayPal was offering 20% cash back. Bonus - Microsoft was giving crazy trade in values on random gear. I think I sent them an 8th gen iPad for around $160, and a 2nd-gen Surface Go for maybe $150? No way I could get those prices on the secondary market. And I got the trade-in value back via ACH, so real cash.
Anyways, I got the laptop for $600 net of PayPal offer, less $300 trade-in promo - so $300 out of pocket... and now that same laptop is $1092!!
In December, Microsoft had the 13" Surface Laptop Snapdragon X on sale for $692, and PayPal was offering 20% cash back. Bonus - Microsoft was giving crazy trade in values on random gear. I think I sent them an 8th gen iPad for around $160, and a 2nd-gen Surface Go for maybe $150? No way I could get those prices on the secondary market. And I got the trade-in value back via ACH, so real cash.
Anyways, I got the laptop for $600 net of PayPal offer, less $300 trade-in promo - so $300 out of pocket... and now that same laptop is $1092!!
1BadManVan
macrumors 68040
Only reason I have a windows machine is for my main gaming rig, but as I'm getting older, I play less and less so this will likely be my last desktop gaming system. So unless Apple really drops the ball in the future, I foresee myself just sticking with Macs only going forward. Been over 5 years now since Apple released the M1, and only recently have they finally released a couple laptops from the windows side that seem more competitive for price to performance, but still stuck dealing with the windows issues.
1BadManVan
macrumors 68040
I think they will have to raise them eventually, at the latest, by next year if the market keeps going the way it is. That's why I chose this year to upgrade my Mac, I was fully expecting a decent price bump this year, when that didn't happen, I went for it right away, not risking it another year lol
FattiesGoneWild
macrumors 6502a
Well they killed that product line hardware wise just like XBOX. Well done MS! It’s one thing to have price increases, these are significant increases. 🤦♂️🙂↔️
pdaholic
macrumors 68020
It’s amazing to see the price trend on Amazon, that’s quite a jump.
I have both the 12” and 13” surface pro versions. I think the 12” is fantastic, it’s iPad size with a built-in kickstand. And it’s a full desktop. Unfortunately windows has fallen so far. The app store is really weak, and you end up using web apps for everything. I use Handbrake for video processing a lot, and it fails frequently while the same file is able to be converted with handbrake on the Mac.
I have both the 12” and 13” surface pro versions. I think the 12” is fantastic, it’s iPad size with a built-in kickstand. And it’s a full desktop. Unfortunately windows has fallen so far. The app store is really weak, and you end up using web apps for everything. I use Handbrake for video processing a lot, and it fails frequently while the same file is able to be converted with handbrake on the Mac.
Yeah, I think I’m going to pick up a 16-inch MacBook Pro. I’ll forgo the M5 Max for the 18-core M5 Pro chip. But I’ll option it up to 64 GB of RAM and 2TB of storage. That should last me seven years - if not longer.
But does it include Windows 11? It's what plants crave.
AI was never pushed by consumers. Not now, not ever. It’s Wall Street that’s been demanding it - because it sees money. Or thinks that it sees money.
davidg4781
macrumors 68040
You’ll probably run into internet security issues long before the hardware dies. That’s what happened with my 2010 MBP.
SnowPenguin
macrumors 6502
"Hi I am a PC"
"Hi I am a Mac, and I am actually cheaper, lol."
"Hi I am a Mac, and I am actually cheaper, lol."